


No big deal

by SpaceBae



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pining, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-21
Updated: 2019-02-27
Packaged: 2019-11-01 15:50:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17870165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpaceBae/pseuds/SpaceBae
Summary: Roxas just wants to avoid being set up by his brother for the family vacation. Asking his best friend (and crush) to pretend to be his boyfriend for the week does not sound like a big deal. Until it is.





	1. Day 0

**Author's Note:**

> About the characters ages :  
> Roxas and Sora are 19, Xion 18. Axel is 24. Kairi is 18 and Riku is 20. Everyone is of age thx. 
> 
> I couldn't decide if I wanted Sora with Kairi or Riku soooo why not both?
> 
> Please give me validation and I'll update as fast as I can.

If he’s being honest, Axel can pinpoint the moment that mess started. It’s not when he decided to get out of bed that morning, or even when Roxas had the call from his parents for his nineteenth birthday. No. It all began when Roxas was about to turn eighteen and he grew four inches and started going to the gym and Axel though, _damn_.

Cause here’s the thing. People might want to pin this as the creepy twenty-four years old lusting after his little sister's friend but it’s really not. Sure, Axel met Roxas when the guy was fifteen in a literature club he was part of. He became friends with him cause Roxie knew Xion from school and she told him about her brother. But Axel only ever thought about him as a friend.

But then Roxas was all grown up and Axel is weak for any kind of romance so of course he fell for his best friend. Xion is not an idiot. She cornered her big brother a few weeks after he started panicking about having a crush on the blond.

“You know, if you don’t want Roxas to find out, you’re going to have to be a bit more stealthy”

He stared at her like she had gone completely insane.

“What? No! What are you talking about? Noticing what? There’s nothing to notice!”

“Whatever, nerd. Just so you know I think it’s totally cool if you two date”

“I don’t want to date him!”

And things stayed like this. Axel eventually accepted he was deep in love with the younger man and went on with his life. It’s not like he was going to make a move. He did think about it for a while, but then Roxas started dating this Hayner dude, and that lasted for a few months during which Axel was a miserable mess.

Obviously Roxas did not think of him that way and that was fine. It was not going to ruin their friendship, not because Axel could not control a crush. But then Roxas turned nineteen and was invited to go on this yearly trip to his parent’s beach house.

Thing is, these trips were usually fun except for one part: Roxas’ twin brother, Sora, always tried to hook him up with someone. It was like that since Roxas was fifteen. The first year was all fun and games, Sora bringing Riku over and trying to pass him off to his brother so he could flirt with Kairi. Roxas and Riku had absolutely no interest in each other but kept good company (apart from the whining from the blue haired guy who was obviously, totally into Sora).

The next year, there was no such luck. The three teens had finally gotten their heads out of their asses and realised they were all kind of in love with each other. Roxas’ parents did not even bat an eyelash when they heard Sora was poly, they just rolled with it. So of course his twin has to find someone else to dump on Roxas and he invited the most obnoxious, annoying asshole ever: Seifer.

He invited him again when Roxas was seventeen, and Roxas almost left as soon as he saw the guy. He was a fucking snob who kept boasting about everything. Worst thing was, the guy was terribly handsy. When he came back, the blond angrily complained for weeks to Axel and Xion. He apparently also told Kairi, because Sora got quite a scolding and promised to never invite the guy over again.

His eighteenth birthday was actually fun. He was dating Hayner at the time, so he got a full week of hanging out with his brother and friends and nights of cuddling and fucking his boyfriend. Overall, a great time.

So Axel is expecting to hear about the trip today, since Roxas is leaving the next day. Sora always called a bit before to let his brother know the name of his assigned date for the week.

When Roxas meets Xion and Axel in their favorite coffee shop that morning, he's freaking out.

“Oh god guys I fucked up bad” he says as he’s sitting down.

Xion sends him a curious look and Axel just slides him the coffee he got him (two creams, two sugars).

“What’s that about?” He asks.

“Sora called me. You’re never going to guess who he wanted to hook me up with this year”

“He’s better not be bringing Seifer again or so help me I’m calling Kairi and having her kick his ass” Xion says over her black coffee.

“Fuck man, I _wish_ he was bringing him”

“That bad?” Axel raises an eyebrow at that.

“He wanted to bring Saïx”

There is a silence at that. Saïx is Axel’s ex from a couple years ago. He was terrible. Possessive, jealous, prone to anger. He’d ignored Axel’s for days when he did something he disliked, without any explanation. The redhead remembers feeling like total shit for hanging out with friends, because Saïx would guilt trip him for hours about it. It took Axel weeks of crying and hating himself before he finally got the guts to end it.

“Ew. Just tell him he’s an abusive asshole and you have no intention of ever touching his dick”

“See that would have been the smart thing to do”

“Roxie, what did you do?”

“Well. I told him he couldn’t bring me a date cause I was in a relationship. And bringing that person over”

“Oh”

Xion peaks at Axel with a smirk, like some terrible thing is going on in this devilish little mind of hers. Obviously Roxas can’t tell his twin about his lie, because Sora will hold it over him for the rest of their lives.

“Well. You just need to bring a date then” Xion says, matter of fact.

“Yeah, just bring Xion” Axel agrees.

Roxas shoots him an unimpressed glance.

“Oh yeah, I’m sure everyone will believe the biggest fucking gay in their family is dating this adorable little very female lady”

“Awww Roxie, you think I’m adorable” Xion leans over the table to hold his hands, he rolls his eyes.

“Oh yeah, right” Axel says “Well, what about Demyx? You got pretty close to him at the Halloween party”

“Oh my god Ax, that was _months_ ago. Are you still mad I didn’t tell you I slept with him until a week after?”

Oh yeah, that is definitely what it’s about.

“No I’m being serious. Think about it: Demyx is a chill guy, you two will have fun over the week. Plus, if you’re lucky, you might get a couple blowjobs out of it”

The idea does sound appealing for a bit. Roxas likes Demyx, and they did have a lot of drunken fun at that party. It’s July now, so it was a while ago, but the other man might accept the offer. Or maybe he won’t remember what happened between them: let’s just say the guy has a reputation for sleeping with a lot of people. Axel spent a few nights with him when he was trying to stop mopping over Roxas. Turns out fucking a guy you know your crush has slept with is not the healthiest way to forget the crush.

“Nah. He’s cool but I don’t feel like I can ask that of him” Roxas finally decides.

Xion has released his hands but is still smiling. She stares at her brother for a while and then figures out that, _fuck that_ , these two idiots won’t manage without her.

“Why don’t you just bring Ax?” she asks with the most evil smile the redhead has ever seen.

If Axel does not notice how red Roxas turns at the suggestion, it’s because he is totally frozen. That little shit. He cannot believe his sister would throw him under the freaking bus like this. Even if they don’t talk about it, she knows how deep her brother is for their friend. She wants to torture him. Cause as sweet as cuddling with Roxas for a week seems, Axel is no idiot. He knows pretending to have the real thing is only going to make him even sadder when he gets back.

The good thing is, there is no way Roxas will accept. He obviously only thinks of Axel as a friend and does not want to be stuck a week pretending to be dating someone he could never picture romantically.

“That’s not a bad idea” the blond says.

Axel’s eyes almost pop out of his skull and he makes a surprised noise at that. Well that’s it, the world has abandoned him. _Fuck_.

“You- you’d be okay to bringing me to your whole family as your boyfriend?” He asks.

“Well, if you don’t mind! It’s the perfect solution to be honest. Instead of being awkwardly stuck with a stranger when my parents and brother hope I fall in love, I get to spend time with one of my best friends. It’s not like it’s a big deal to like, hold hands and stuff for a week.”

Axel wants to say that it is a pretty big deal. He will probably combust if he holds hands with Roxas. Or if they have a campfire and Roxas sits close enough to touch him. Or maybe he can sit between Axel’s legs, and Axel can put his arms around him and rest his chin on his shoulder. Roxas is probably the perfect size for that. Oh god.

It’s a shame Axel can never say no to his best friend because he will surely be the death of him.

“Yeah you’re right” he lies through his teeth “Then I’ll be your boyfriend for the next week!”

* * *

 

They spend a little time figuring out their story with the help of Xion. They are going to say that both of them have been secretly crushing on one another for a while, and that Axel managed to confess on Roxas’ birthday. The rest is history.

The trip being the next day, Roxas suggest following Axel to his apartment so they can figure out the details while he packs. He’s sitting on the bed at the moment, watching his best friend take out enough clothes to last a month out of his closet.

“Okay so. We should talk about like boundaries and stuff” Roxas eventually says “When I went there with Hayner we were a bit…”

“Horny” Axel says without looking over.

These two were all over each other. It was excruciating.

“Hey! We were touchy okay, let’s put it that way. So like, if we just started dating I think it would be okay to not be making out in every corner of the house. But if we’re not touching there’s no way Sora will believe we’re a couple”

“I’m alright with pretty much anything” Axel says “just tell me what you’re not comfortable with.”

Roxas blushes a bit

“I’m fine with holding hands, and cuddling, and like, touching in general. But I don’t think I’d be comfortable kissing you on the lips. I guess anywhere else is fine though”

“Anywhere?” the redhead asks with a smirk and then remembers this feels a lot like flirting and he should not be flirty with his best friend

“Dumbass” Roxas laughs (he’s a bit red, though) “like. Anywhere acceptable in public kind of anywhere”

“Alright. How about this : If we are ever uncomfortable with anything the other does, we just say ‘Larxene just sent me a text’”

Axel mainly says that for Roxas. There is no way the other man can do something that would make him uncomfortable. Hell, Roxie could ask him to do anything. But he’s worried about being unable to control his crush and putting his best friend in an awkward position.

“Alright” Roxas says with a smile “So… We’ve been dating since my birthday right? That was two weeks ago. Have we slept together?”

Axel stares at him, surprised.

“You would sleep with someone you’ve been dating for two weeks?”

“Well. You’re my best friend. I’ve known you for a while. I guess if we were dating, I would have slept with you on the first night”

Axel gulps. God, for nineteen years old, Roxas sure acts like a horny teenager. Or maybe it’s just that Axel is in love with the guy and thinks he deserves more than a lover who’s jump him on the first date. If he was really dating his friend, he would wait until the perfect, most romantic moment before making a move.

“I don’t think I would. How about that: we didn’t have sex yet, but we did fall asleep together on our first date”

“What did we do on our first date?” Roxas prompts.

That’s easy, it’s not like Axel has fantasized about that over a thousand times.

“Well, I confessed to you on your birthday. We went to see one of those cheesy cartoon movies you love, and then I took you to the arcade. After that, we had dinner in an actually fancy restaurant, and I took you for ice cream after. We watched the sunset on top of the clock tower. Then we went back to your apartment to play video games, but you fell asleep midway. I tucked you in bed and was about to go back to the couch, but you woke up and told me to stay with you”

“Wow, who knew you read so many romance novels, Romeo”

Axel rolls his eyes.

“But that’s fine, that’s perfect”

Roxas looks at the pile of clothes laid on the bed that Axel is in the process of choosing. He digs through it a bit and take out Axel’s favourite hoodie. It’s black and silver and infinitely soft. The blond put it on and Axel dies a bit on this inside. It’s too big for Roxas because Axel is a foot taller than him but it looks fucking adorable. Plus, it’s Roxas in his shirt and that alone makes his heart do a lot of flips inside his chest.

“That’s mine for the week. I’m stealing it”

“Fine” he chokes out.

The rest of the evening continues with a bit more talking about their “relationship”. Other than that, Axel pack his bag and jokes around with his best friend, and they play a couple rounds of super smash bros before Roxas goes back to his place. Axel knows him and made him promise to have everything packed for the next day. He half expect him to do it the next morning, half asleep.

Roxas asks him if he minds doing the trip with Sora, Kairi and Riku. It’s a twelve hours ride (plus a 30 minutes boat ride) to destiny’s islands, and Axel likes driving. He offers his best friend to pick Sora and his partners and to drive them all. In a matter of minutes it’s arranged, and Axel is a bit dreading facing the twin the next morning. He’s picking the couple up at eight, and this will be his first trial as Roxas’ official fake boyfriend.

Fun.


	2. Day 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some memories, a roadtrip, and a single bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there was only one bed.
> 
> Once again, validate me and I'll update as fast as possible

When Roxas wakes up the next day at 7am, he wants to die. And it’s not like he wakes up on his own: there’s a few minutes of persistent knocking before the front door opens. Axel and Xion have a key for his apartment, so they can check on him if he disappears for days (perks of being mentally ill, yay). Xion does not use it unless it’s an emergency, but Axel has no shame in just barging in his house. It’s not like Roxas particularly cares.

Still, this early in the day, not even his best friend’s beautiful face can rouse him from bed. Roxas has never been an early bird and is surely not going to start today. Screw Destiny’s Islands for being so far away.

“Rise and shine, Roxie!” says Axel from the other room, with much too enthusiasm for the hour.

The blond only grumbles and hide under his blankets. He’s not in a very clear state of mind considering he’s still half asleep, and groans when Axel opens his room’s lights and throws the covers off him. _Ugh_. Why did humans invent being awake?

“Come on, up. I got you coffee.”

At the promise of the sugary greatness that is his morning coffee, Roxas opens an eye. If he wasn’t used to Axel’s unfair good looks, he would probably gasp. The other man is wearing all black, and a sleeveless shirt with the arm holes so low cut that Roxas can see almost half his chest. Well, that’s a good way to wake up, he guesses. Axel’s hair is tied into a half bun at the top of his head, and Roxas has to remind himself to breathe and not look like too much of a lovestruck puppy.

When Roxas first met his friend, he was taken aback with how handsome the man was. Actually, he gushed about the mysterious red head hottie in his book club to Xion, and his friend almost died laughing.

“In the clock tower reading group?”, she asked, “Roxie that’s my big brother you’re talking about”

He was mortified for a bit, especially when he learned the guy was five years older than him. Xion made fun of him for a while, even going as far as telling Axel about her friend so he went and talked to him. Surprise though, the two boys hit if off and became great friends. Honestly, it was a good thing because she loved her brother and did not mind having him around more often.

Other than finding Axel terribly attractive, Roxas did not initially have a terribly huge crush on him. That happened recently. Hayner and him broke up after four months together, because even though they were good friends and enjoyed making out with each other, there was nothing else there.

By then Axel had changed his attitude towards him and Xion. He initially treated them as kids (which was fair, they were) but as they grew up their friendship evolved into something else than a sibling bond. The redhead had always been close to his sister, but as she became an adult, they were simply able to talk about more things. The same was true for Roxas.

So in August of the last year, Roxas started to think about Axel in another light. Of course he was even more handsome by then so that was a plus. But Roxas started to notice how nice it was to see his friend’s smile, or how good of a team they made.

Roxas is a pretty logical person, so when he started to (over)think about it, he figured how good of a couple the two of them would make. Axel is great with supporting him in his depression bits and knows how to handle his panic attacks. They share interests and a sense of humour, and he’s not upset when Roxas needs alone time to recharge his energy.

Roxas is an introvert, but somehow hanging out with Axel drains him a lot less then other people. Oh sure, sometimes he still needs his solitude, but also, being with Axel is easy and almost feels as good as being alone.

So he initially convinces himself that, _hey_ , him and Axel would really be great together. And Axel actually seems to consider him an adult now, so maybe it is something that’s possible. But then he stumbles across Larxene and Marluxia talking to his friend at the Halloween party, and he can hear him again say _Oh come on, he’s like my little brother_.

He’s so upset he takes two shots straight and go sits outside with the bottle of vodka. He’s so mad at himself for thinking that this could work, that there was a chance Axel liked him back. _Ugh_. He’s the same age as his sister, of course the guy is not going to picture himself with him romantically.

Roxas is a lightweight, so he’s already feeling a little tipsy by then. He’s angry and his ego is bruised, and he almost feels like going back there and giving Axel a piece of his mind. Maybe scream at him that he’s an adult and not his brother and that’s he’s a complete idiot for not seeing how perfect they are for one another.

Demyx finds him outside, taking a swig from the bottle of vodka. They’ve been friends for a bit, since they have a couple classes together. Demyx is a music major in college, but he takes some maths classes as extracurriculars, which means he’s with Roxas.

“Hey Rox, you okay there?” Demyx asks while sitting down next to him.

“Men are the worst”

“Ah! Totally agree with you here. Somebody giving you trouble?”

“I fucking hate being treated as a kid. Fuck, I’m in college. The same as all of them. So why does anyone older than me thinks I’m all cute and tiny”

“Well, you are only 5”5’”, he laughs

“Wow fuck you”

Demyx smiles again, and then turn to Roxas with a serious stare.

“Not everyone thinks that though. All your friends know you’re mature and smart. You obviously don’t behave like a kid. Hell, you’re less childish than me and I’m two years older! I’m sorry about whoever’s troubling you, but you really should not give him much thought. If he treats you like you’re a high schooler and that bothers you, just kick his ass. He obviously does not know you at all if he doesn’t think you deserve to be considered an adult”

“Still sucks though. How do you deal with liking someone who thinks you belong in kindergarten?”

“I’d say you don’t like them, because they obviously don’t get you. Pinning sucks, Rox, just screw that guy. You’re worth more than that”

They keep talking about it for a while. Maybe Demyx knows exactly who Roxas is complaining about, but he doesn’t mention it. They both have a pretty good buzz going on and eventually the conversation switches to lighter topics, like their midterm exams or the last video game Roxas played.

Demyx is sweet. He’s easy to talk to and just a nice person overall. He’s cute too, in a soft, easy kind of way. And when he speaks about music, his eyes light up and he seems so passionate it’s hard to not be enraptured with him.

He’s doing just that and Roxas is staring at him with a dazed expression, but maybe it’s the alcohol. The words are out of his mouth before he can think them properly.

“I kind of want to kiss you”

“Ok” is all Demyx says.

And Roxas does. He gently pushes their mouths together and can smell the booze on both their breaths. It’s nice, honestly. Demyx responds and deepen the kiss almost instantly, and it feels right.

Days after the party, Roxas feels a bit better. Oh he’s still pissed at the situation, but it’s impossible for him to hate Axel. It also seems impossible to forget about him, now that Roxas’ heart is set on the guy. Oh well.

So maybe he spends months mooning over the guy. And maybe when Xion proposes he pretends to be dating him to get away from Sora’s terrible matchmaking, he figures having something fake for a week is better than having nothing. And maybe when he gets home after stealing Axel hoodie, he figures he’s allowed to sleep in it because it smells like his crush and he can have that at least.

Which is embarrassing when Axel wakes him up, handing him coffee, and sees his friend in his clothes. He’s staring at Roxas and probably finds that pretty creepy. _Think, Roxas. Say something so you don’t look like a freak_.

“Hey your hoodie is super soft. Where did you even get it? I’m totally buying one.”

Axel stays silent for a moment and shakes his head as if he wants to get away from stray thoughts.

“Um. It’s the O13 limited fall edition. I’m not sure they still have it.”

Roxas pretends to be very disappointed and finally takes the coffee, drinking half of it in one go. He drops it on his bedside table and eventually gets up. Oh yeah, maybe he should have slept with pants on.

“I’m going to wait for you in the kitchen. Don’t take too long!” Axel says and almost bolts out of his room.

Whatever.  

* * *

 

 

They arrive at Sora’s place almost an hour later, after Roxas packs his bags (called it) and they stop for breakfast (and another coffee for Roxas). Axel stays in the car while Roxas goes get his twin.

The blonde knocks on the door and is not particularly surprised when Kairi is the one to open up. She invites him in for a second, as Riku tries to convince Sora that, _it’s fine, Namine will take good care of Donald and Goofy_ (they have two pets, a beautiful white bird and a sweet mixed dog). Sora tries to convince him to just bring them along, but Riku doesn’t budge.

“Oh hey Rox”, the taller man says when he sees him.

Sora has the attention span of a five years old, so when he hears Roxas’ name, he instantly stops crying over his pets. He rushes to his brother.

“Where is he?? Rox, where’s your boyfriend Im _so excited_ to meet him oh my god!”

“He’s in the car. Just um, take your bags and let’s go”

Sora is obviously way too hyped to meet his twin’s partner, so he takes his luggage along with Kairi’s and storms down the stairs. Riku follows him with the rest, and their girlfriend just rolls her eyes and follows Roxas out, locking the door on their way.

His brother gets close enough to the car and gasps at the man waiting for them. Riku makes a victorious noise and laughs.

“You owe me 20 bucks babe, I told you they were dating!”

“Aw man. Really Roxas?? Axel?” Sora asks, like he’s almost disappointed.

“What’s wrong with me?” said man calls after him.

Riku packs the bag in the vehicle as Sora answers.

“I just figured you know, if you guys were to date, you would have started to a while ago”

He almost seems like he’s seeing through their scheme, and Roxas doesn’t know whether to be surprised or mortified. The thing is, Sora is not known to be the sharpest tool in the shed. It’s not like he’s an idiot either, he’s just… simple-minded. He doesn’t overthink things like his twin does.

“We’re just a bit dumb, I guess” Roxas says as he walks to his ‘boyfriend’.

Axel smiles at that and throws an arm over his best friend’s shoulders. He does a fantastic job at acting lovesick, that’s for sure, because with the way he’s looking at him Roxas almost forget the other man thinks of him as a brother.

“You mean you’re dumb”, Axel says, “I tried to hint him I’m totally in love with him for _ages_ and he never figured it out. Had to spell it out for him”

The words, even though they are fake, hit Roxas deep. _In love_. How he wishes that was true. He figures he’ll have to get him back somehow.

“Well I’m sorry I didn’t realise paying for my ice cream counted as a hint” he answers back with mischief in his voice.

It seems to be alright for Sora, who thinks this is flirting, because he makes a disgusted noise before saying:

“Ugh. You two are so into each other it’s going to be a terrible week”

The blond rolls his eyes and soon enough everything is packed, and they are all sitting in the car and ready to go. He initially tries to make small talk, but Kairi is soon falling asleep on Riku so he figures he’ll just do the same. Except you know, he’s sitting shotgun and you can’t very well fall asleep on the driver, so the window will have to do.

* * *

 

 

He wakes up a few hours in the drive to Sora and Riku bickering. Checking the clock tells him it’s about eleven. 

“I’m just saying, why is it that she always has to cuddle up on you when she falls asleep? I’m comfortable too” Sora is complaining.

“Sure you are, pipsqueak” Riku says with a smile in his voice.

“How dare you?? That’s it, when Kairi wakes up, I’m talking her into dumping you”

“But then who will she fall asleep on?”

They bicker for a while like this. A normal person might be worried, but Roxas knows that’s just how these two show they care for one another. Riku has trouble expressing his emotions when it comes to Sora, even though he mellows down considerably when he’s around Kairi.

They’re all good for one another, if Roxas think about it, and he’s really glad they found each other. Sora and Kairi are two literal sunshines (though an angry Kairi is the most terrifying thing in the world) and they help Riku enjoy life and be happy. He grounds them. And obviously Kairi is the voice of reason in their couple.

They drive for another hour or so before Kairi wakes up, still propped on Riku’s shoulder. She stretches a bit.

“Well that was a nice nap” she says.

“Kairi we’re dumping your boyfriend” Sora immediately answers.

“Why?”

“He called me short”

“You are short”

Sora looks at her like she has stabbed him.

“I can’t believe this! I’m being betrayed by my boyfriend AND my girlfriend. I don’t deserve this!”

“Aww Sora it’s okay” Kairi says while putting her hand on his arm, “how about this, we stop for dinner and I’ll make Riku buy you a milkshake as an apology?”

“It has to be oreo”

“Sure thing”

“Alright”

She smiles and kisses his cheek. Obviously not mad, Sora gently takes a hold of her hand and cuddles up to her as much as he can while sitting in the car. Riku throws his arm over Kairi’s shoulder and reaches to play with Sora’s hair with a smile.

“Now who’s disgustingly into one another?” says Axel from the driver’s seat.

They stop for burgers and fries for dinner, and then in a little café later at night. Soon enough it’s almost eleven and they have parked the car an taken the ferry to Destiny’s Island.

Roxas does not like traveling very much and he’s ecstatic when they finally reach the beach house, at about half before midnight. It’s big, mansion like cottage, and the living room lights are still opened. Their parents must have been waiting up.

Yuffie opens the door and throws her arms around her two sons, hugging them close. Leon is not far behind.

“My boys! I’m so glad your finally here!”, she says “And of course Riku, and beautiful Kairi.”

She hugs both of them and eventually gets to Axel.

“And you must be Roxas’ boyfriend! Sora called me as soon as he learned about you! I’m the lucky mother of these two rascals, you can call me Yuffie”

She’s a ball of energy, and if Axel didn’t know the twins were adopted he would definitely figure Sora got his sunshine temper from her. She hugs him briefly and he’s a little uncomfortable but goes with it, after introducing himself.

Roxas’ father then comes forwards and greets his sons and the two others. When he gets to Axel, however, he does not have the same expression on his face. He looks, well, a little murderous. Roxas has not seen his father like that often.

“How old are you?” Leon asks with a cold face, staring straight at Axel.

“Um. Twenty-four, Sir” he gulps.

He seems like he’s about to press for something else but Roxas figures he has to save his best friend otherwise Axel will run away or be murdered by his dad.

“So! We had a pretty long day of travelling we should probably just unpack and go to bed!!” he says, “it’s okay if I give the guest room to Axel right?”

“Hell no!” Sora says, “that is just next to ours, and I really don’t want to know what you guys get up to during the night. Just install him in your room with you, we all know you’ll end up together anyway!”

At that mention, their dad seems to be fuming again but Yuffie just laughs a bit.

“Yeah sweety, it’s fine for you to share. We would rather not have a replay of last year”

Damn. Why did he have to be such a horndog with Hayner? It’s not that he minds sleeping in the same room as Axel but he minds not being able to sleep. There’s no way he’ll be able to shut his eyes with this gorgeous man in the same room. _Fuck._ Well. Might as well make the best of it.

Leon takes a deep breath and tells them goodnight, and then takes his leave. Their mother does the same quickly after, and the group quickly unpacks the car. Roxas takes his bags upstairs and into his room, his best friend following closely.

They unpack some of their stock in comfortable silence for a bit, and then Roxas goes to change in the connected bathroom. He’s almost pained to remove the sweater, but figures he’ll just wear it again as soon as possible. He brushes his teeth and gets into his pyjamas (with pants, this time) because even if it was meant to save Axel, he really is tired and wants to get to bed as soon as possible.

When he gets back to the room, Axel has changed and is installing a pillow and a couple blankets on the floor next to Roxas’ bed.

“Come on, really?” Roxas says while rolling his eyes.

“Well I didn’t think you’d be comfortable with sharing, and it’s a bit my fault if we’re in this position and-“

“Dude the bed is huge. If you’re not uncomfortable with it, we can totally share. I won’t let you break your back on the floor for a week”

“You really don’t mind?”

Roxas answers by throwing the blanket over the bed again and laying down under it. Whatever. On the floor or on the bed next to him, there’s no way Roxas will be able to sleep with Axel so close, so one of them might has well get a good night rest.

Tentatively, the redhead lays on the other side. They don’t touch (the bed really is big enough), but Roxas is overly aware of the warmth a couple inches from him and how easy it would be to reach over and wrap his arms around Axel’s waist. He terribly wants this. It’s such a shame it’s unreciprocated.

“Night Roxie” Axel says as he turns out the lights.

“Night”


	3. Day 2, part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boys being dumb. Also Leon is kind of scary.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had to split this chapter cause it would have been too long otherwise. Oups.

The sunshine gently brightening the room wakes up Axel. He’s comfortable under the soft blankets, with a nice warm pressure on his side. He’s not a heavy sleeper even when no alarm is set, so he figures it must not be too late in the day. He reaches over his night desk to grab his phone only to touch more bed. Opening his eyes reveal a soft mop of blonde hair resting on his chest. It takes him a moment of sleepy confusion to realise that, _oh right,_ he’s at Roxas’ beach house and also pretending to be his boyfriend.

Axel has one arm around Roxas, who’s hugging him at the waist. His hand is resting on Roxas’ hipbone and he feels a little bit like dying when he realises his thumb is brushing against bare skin. He almost jumps out of bed out of panic, but then rationalise that if his best friend cared about impromptu cuddle sessions, he wouldn’t have invited him to share the bed.

Of course Roxie is a goddamn octopus to sleep with, Axel should have known. The guy is notorious for always being cold and the redhead knows he has the reputation of being a human furnace. It’s not like Roxas has not taken advantage of that on late nights when they walked back to their apartments. Roxas most have simply drifted to the closeness of warmth during the night, not thinking about what the warmth actually was.

 _Fuck_. This is so nice. For a second Axel lets himself forget that nothing about this is real, and gently runs his thumb on Roxas’ skin. That seems to make his friend nuzzle closer to him, and he briefly pictures himself waking up like this for the rest of his life.

If he was actually dating his friend, he would probably gently kiss the top of his head. He’d drag his hand further under Roxas’ shirt, stroking his ribs softly. Maybe Roxas would wake at that and give Axel his best sleepy smile. He would gently kiss him on the lips, and maybe they would spend the best of the morning rolling around on the sheets.

But he is only the idiot pinning for his best friend, and Roxas has no interest in making out with him. Axel is embarrassed at his own brain for making him such a lovestruck moron.

He tries to take him arm away from Roxas, but that seems to disturb the other man’s sleep enough for him to wake.

“Ugh. No. Don’t move. Comfy.” the blond whines.

Axel’s heart soars at that, _Roxie wants to stay close to me_ , before he chastises himself. Of course he says that, he’s half asleep and comfortable. That does not have anything to do with him being even remotely interested in Axel.

The redhead gently shakes Roxas but his attempts are weak. It’s not like he’s going to try very hard to get rid of the sleepy boy on him, especially as he won’t get to enjoy this kind of situation often.

There’s a knock on the door and Sora’s voice calls out from behind it.

“Rox, wake up! It’s almost nine, we wanna get to the beach!”

When Roxas refuses to answer, there’s an exaggerated sigh.

“I swear to god you two better not be naked.” Sora grumbles before barging in.

His gaze softens an instant when he spots Roxas cuddling up to Axel’s side, but before soon he’s apologising to the redhead and pulling Roxas out of bed. This is the only way to wake him up, he swears. He grabs the blond arm and tugs, throwing his twin on the floor.

Roxas curses at hitting the hard wood and seems like he wants to strangle his brother.

“I should have absorbed you in the womb” he says.

Sora flashes him one of his trademark sunshine smiles, and then proceeds to completely ignore him.

“Well Axel, you seem awake enough. Make sure he gets ready quick and meet us downstairs. If I was you, I’d stick with Rox. I don’t think you want to risk running into dad. I’m not sure why but I’m pretty sure he hates you.”

“Thanks for the tip,” Axel gulps, “we’ll be right there.” 

* * *

 

 

Axel swears if he had not been there Roxas would have gone back to bed. Actually, the blond seems to consider just falling asleep on the floor. Axel however forces him to move and they both get ready in a matter of minutes.

Roxas is still sporting a bedhead when they leave the room, but he did change into swimming trunks and a blue shirt. He seems like he wants to complain at Axel’s fashion sense (he is after all wearing a bright pink mesh shirt over a black tank) but Axel would just swears he makes it work and Roxas knows better then to argue with him.

Listening to Sora’s advice, Axel sticks close to his best friend as they make their way to the kitchen. He’s not sure what their father deal is, (the twins’ mother seems nice enough) but he does look at Axel like he wants to shoot him. Maybe it’s the eyeliner, or the weird sense of style, or the fact that he’s obviously older than Roxas. It’s not like Leon knows him, so he can’t hate him based on his personality (as a lot of people do). Plus, Riku is a bit of a dick and the twins’ father does not seem to have a problem with him. Sure, the guy is obviously totally smitten by his son, but so is Axel with Roxas.

When they meet up with he others, the twins’ parents have already left for a walk on the beach. Axel won’t complain. If he manages to avoid Leon for the whole week, it’ll be a win in itself.

 Kairi hands them a couple croissants (right out of the oven, hell yeah!) and tells  them to eat quickly.

“We’ve been waiting for hours you guys,” she complains, “I can’t believe you two get to sleep that much. Sora just wakes us up at seven.”

“Probably a late night” Riku smirks as he insinuates it.

“It’s not like that” Roxas defends himself.

But Sora obviously seems to think it is like that, if the laugh he gives at Riku’s suggestion is any indication. He picks up another croissant and tosses it at his brother.

“Here, you obviously need the energy” he quips.

Axel decides the best course of action is to let Roxas deal with this, because the thought of what Sora think they’ve been doing all night is too much for him to talk about. Instead, he lets his best friend stumble to explain that _it’s really not like that_ and fills a thermos with coffee. He adds cream and sugar even though he likes his black, because otherwise Roxas will not drink it. He can handle bad coffee if it makes the guy happy.

Riku and Sora are still making fun of Roxas, who is deep red by now, so Axel figures maybe he needs to save his best friend. _Time to profit off Sora’s brain._

“Weren’t you guys in a rush to get to the beach?”

Sora instantly turns to him with shining eyes. Thank god for his terrible attention span. He grabs Riku’s hand and tug him to the door.

“He’s right! Time to go. Bet you can’t race me there ‘ku!”

Obviously the guy is competitive, because as soon as they are outside, the two of them start sprinting. Kairi just rolls her eyes and stroll next to the other “couple”, after grabbing her beach bag. They run across Yuffie and Leon on the way, who are currently making their way around the island. Kairi makes a bit of smalltalk as the twins’ father keeps trying to drill holes into Axel’s head. _Ouch._

The redhead is more than happy to be out of the man’s sight, and almost doesn’t jump when Roxas grabs his hand. He sees Kairi eying him with a suspicious look, so he squeezes his friend’s hand a little, and tries to look at him and smile without looking too sad that this is all fake and it’s going to be over sooner than he can picture.

They arrive on the beach quickly enough to spot a victorious Sora jumping around Riku. The taller boy is scolding as he gets teased and grabs his boyfriend, throwing him over his shoulder. He advances into the water and, when he deems it’s far enough from the shore, throws Sora in the sea. The other man just laughs and then launches himself at Riku’s calves, making him trip over in the water.

They seem to have a lot of fun play fighting, and Kairi is smiling fondly at them. She throws a towel on the sand and sits down on it, taking out a book.

“You’re not going with them?” Axel asks.

“I’m banned from beach fights. Apparently, I ‘scratch’ and ‘get violent’ and ‘am very scary’ when I want to win.”

Axel has no trouble believing that and laughs a little at the mental image. Tiny little Kairi totally wrecking her two, taller boyfriends. He’d think it absurd, but he knows that Xion could take him and Roxas on any day.

He barely registers the hand that left his, because when he’s turning over Roxas has his shirt over his head and _holy fuck that is a lot of skin_. Axel knows his friend is a regular at the gym, but it’s not like he has a lot of occasions to see Roxas half naked. His back is deliciously toned for such a short guy and calling him cute is really the thing the furthest from Axel’s mind right now. He almost wants to take a picture but figures it’ll seem creepy to Roxas. But then he thinks, _fuck that, it’s my boyfriend_ , and gets his phone out.

“Hey what are you doing?” the blond says as he turns over.

“I’m sending Xion a pic to show her how ripped my boyfriend is” he answers with a smile.

Roxas blushes.

“You’re such an idiot.”

Technically, Axel is not lying. He did send his sister the picture with the caption “wow did you knew about that?”. If it somehow ended up saved in his phone, it is an accident. Figuring Kairi is right next to them and he can get away with flirting with Roxas (because it’s all for show right?), he smirks at his best friend.

“Maybe I should make this my phone wallpaper” he suggests.

“Don’t you dare!”

Roxas digs into Kairi’s beach bag and steals her sunscreen and Axel is ultimately rendered speechless because the blond bends over to do his legs and his perfect butt ends up right in Axel’s line of sight. He almost takes another picture to send Xion but then figures that would be taking the joke too far (and honestly Xion probably would not appreciate), so he just tries his best not to stare as he also takes off his clothes.

Axel brought his own sunscreen, so he busies himself with applying it instead of staring at his best friend’s ass. He’s almost done when Roxas turns to him.

“Hey can you do my back?” he asks with a small smile.

Fuck that, this vacation is going to kill him. And his best friend is obviously set on rushing his death. How can someone be the perfect mix of smoking hot _and_ adorable? There’s no way he is getting away from this trip without some serious trauma. He won’t be able to sleep thinking about Roxas’ ridiculously hot body or the soft skin of his back as he massages the sunscreen on it.

To make things worse, Roxie suggests returning the favor and Axel can only barely refrain from self combusting as his friend’s hands gently work on his back.

Axel barely waits for Roxas to be done before he rushes into the water, still grabbing his friend’s hand for good measure. They reach the two other boys, and Roxas tackles his brother, probably in retribution of having been woke up. They wrestle for a while, and Axel wonders if he should just push Riku into the water or something (he feels left out). The guy has a mean streak in his eye though, and Axel figures he would probably regret it.

The four of them end up playing in the water for a while, Sora dishing out a bunch of challenges at them. Eventually Kairi joins in, throwing a beach ball right into Riku’s face. He complains the same way he did about the race: he picks her up and throws her into the water, as she giggles.

 Eventually the excitement dies down and they just kind of swim around, talking about things.

After a couple hours Axel figures it’s time for a sunscreen pause (the four others might be island kids, but he’s from a cold place and burns like crazy). He heads over for the shore thinking it’s just going to take a couple of minutes, but he doesn’t notice that the twins’ parents have settled on the beach.

Of course with his flaming hair he’s not the most subtle person, so it really should not be a surprise when Leon makes his way over. Axel almost double back to get Roxas or goes say hi to Yuffie. But then he figures he’ll eventually have to talk to the guy and there’s no reason to be terrified of him.

“Axel” Leon says curtly.

“Sir”

“How about we have a little talk right now?”

“Um. Alright”

“See, here’s the thing. You have to understand I’ve been hearing about some guy named ‘Axel’ since my kid was 15. Now I assume that would be you?”

“I mean, yeah, probably”

“And now my boy, who has known this man since he was a child while that man was not, is coming back home and is dating that man”

“Yeah, okay, I follow you. But there was nothing between us until-”

“Let me finish. He is dating that man, and to you it might seem like there was nothing going on when he was a kid, but can you really say that was the case for Roxas?”

Axel thinks, _pretty much yeah, since there is nothing even now._ Still, he has to lie.

“Well, I’m not in his head. But it’s not what he told me, and it’s not like I was ever out of placed with my way of treating, or even thinking about him when he was a teen. I’m sorry sir, but I just happened to fall in love with your child”

At least that’s not a lie. Leon still doesn’t look pleased, but his stare has gone down from straight murder fantasies to a disapproving glare.

“Roxas is an adult. It’s not like I can stop him from doing whatever he wants. But he’s always going to be my kid and let me promise you if you hurt him in any way you will have to answer to me for it. Is that clear?”

Axel almost laughs at that.

“Ah. Believe me, if one of us is likely to hurt the other, it’s definitely not me”


End file.
